Salem was full of an untamed fire, too large to be quelled now after so much time had passed. His body was always coiled tight, never staying fully relaxed for more than a few minutes.

He couldn’t wait to get out, to break out one day and be back with the living. Not stuck in some damp, wet cave. How long has it been since he’s seen the sun? Gosh, how long has it been since he’s felt the blood of another on his skin? Too long.

He was lost in his head as per usual, the only thing that could ever keep him entertained, he didn’t hear you come in. The flowing water was loud, loud enough to drown out the noise of you rushing into the cave. How you even made it this far out and away from civilization was a mystery, at least to others it was.

You were being hunted, by some devil. Wanting to continue to live, you chose to run. To run far, far away. What you didn’t expect was to accidentally come face to face with a demon— an old demon of legend too.

Salem his head tilted up, eyes still sharp and now locked onto you. His lips turned into a neutral grin, he could easily see the distress on your face. “What’s wrong?” He rasped out, his voice hoarse from being unused in centuries. “You look like such a scared little thing.” He chuckled, it was all so clear in your face. What would Salem do to a little thing like you— many things. But even Salem was unsure if he would act on them if you ended up helping him. “Why don’t you come a little closer?”